“The Bar will play its role to observe the proceedings as we are to act without fear or favour,” Bar secretary Roger Chan told FMT.
The Bar had been given the status to hold a watching brief in yesterday’s proceedings which saw Najib slapped with 25 charges in relation to the alleged transfer of RM2.282 billion into his bank accounts from state investment fund 1MDB.
Chan, along with lawyer Saha Deva Arunasalam, were present to observe the case.
Chan said the Bar had also followed the trials of former deputy prime minister and later opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim, who was charged with abuse of power and sexual misconduct in 1998.
“As officers of the court, we are apolitical and do not take sides in public interest cases, whether the personality is from the government or the opposition.”
Chan said Najib’s case was significant as the Bar had filed a judicial review to challenge former attorney-general (AG) Mohamed Apandi Ali who had cleared Najib of wrongdoing regarding some RM2.6 billion in his private bank account.
On Jan 26, 2015, Apandi had directed the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission to close investigations into the case.
The Bar, together with former Cabinet member Zaid Ibrahim and former Batu Kawan Umno deputy chief Khairuddin Abu Hassan, launched a legal battle to review the prosecutorial powers of the AG in refusing to frame charges against Najib.
However, it came to an end last year when the Federal Court dismissed their leave applications and affirmed the findings of the High Court in January 2016 that the AG’s discretion could not be questioned.
Raus Sharif, who was chief justice at the time, said otherwise the AG would be called up to provide his reasons each time a decision was made.
“Then it would be the court and not the AG who exercised power under Article 145 (3),” he said.
In the latest slew of charges against him, Najib was slapped with four counts of abusing his power and 21 of money laundering for transferring illegal funds to his bank account and subsequently using the money.
This brings the total number of charges against him to 32.
The former prime minister was charged with money laundering, criminal breach of trust and abuse of power in July and August relating to funds of about RM42 million that allegedly flowed from SRC International, a former 1MDB unit, into his personal bank account.